Nov 28, 2006

That is the message that was sung to me by Suz the other day. I've kept it because it's hilarious. There is nothing like a dump of snow to put a person in the christmas spirit!! We've got Christmas spirit by the shovel loads around here! The kids are enjoying it- which is the best part. It's hard to enjoy a rainy day- but a snowy day?? Put on some mittens and get outside!!My photo client that was supposed to be today had to rebook for later in the week because she was concerned that I wouldn't be able to get to her home without a four wheel drive. So Saturday it is...So far I haven't had to leave the house in this weather... I'm actually kind of nervous. Not so much for my own driving but the terrain around here isn't very friendly when covered with snow. Our own driveway would make some people freak out at it's steepness (is that a word??). Mix steepness with ice and you've got a mini van protruding from what used to be our garage door. That's the kind of thing I'm worried about. Oh well, I don't forsee having to leave the house again for awhile... so all is well.Check out my flickr account (click on the photo) I've uploaded a few of my own snowday photos from Sunday. Suz has uploaded a bunch of shots from today- LOVE them!! Check out her flickr too.Okay I should hit the sack,~jen

Nov 26, 2006

Paige has been drawing a lot lately. She absolutely loves to copy anything I have drawn and she is so accurate it's scary. I drew these funny icons of breakfast foods, they had wings and a glow about them... she found my doodles and copied her own version. This is a toast with wings, a top hat and a bow on it. He is shopping. He is putting an apple in his grocery cart (love the flippin' cart!). She is definitely my daughter!

What a weekend we've had around here. I spent all week trying to find a baby sitter so Ken and I could attend his company Christmas party. We found a really nice young girl at the last minute- it was so nice to get out and talk with other adults over delicious food and drinks for a few hours. We picked a wonderful table to sit at this year, lots of laughs and interesting stories. One year I made the mistake of sitting down at the table with all of the bosses and their wives... I didn't really notice any difference, since they are all strangers to me but Ken was a tad uncomfortable. Now, I always pay attention to where I'm sitting, or let Ken do the walking. It was fun.

Today was the children's Christmas party. It was at the bowling alley and the kids had a great time, despite the event falling precisely at Nolan's nap time. He flopped around on the floor in a few different areas of the bowling alley (see photo to the left) but once he got some food in his belly he was much happier. Paige had a ball, she bonded with another girl that is the same age as her (born one month prior) and I saw them hug each other at least 3 times and I overheard them arranging a play date. That will be interesting to see them do on their own. It's so cute though.

Nov 22, 2006

It's official. As of yesterday at noon I had my first two clients! One of the customers just shot a wedding and needs someone with 'mad skillz' to edit a bucket load of her photos because she just doesn't have time. After this is taken care of, she wants me to sit down and teach her how to use Photo shop Elements. This is right up my alley, and more than do-able. The second Lady saw my ad posted at the gym and wants me to come to her house to take photos of her three kids. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't just a little nervous about my first actual photography job. BUT, the customer has seen my work (on the poster ad) and they liked it so there is nothing to be nervous about. This whole nervousness thing is just a little thing I've become so good at doing over the last 32 years that it's a hard habit to break. In my new frame of mind, I keep talking to myself positively, seeing- in my mind's eye- everything work out according to plan and me glowing in my success.

Like my neighbour Laurie says, "I'm going to be a busy lady."

I still have so many things to do- wedding invites for my brother, brochure for Laurie, upload many photos and videos so family can see them.... wow. This is going to require that I buy a NEW daytimer if only for the bigger writing space.

Nov 21, 2006

Hello folks! Sorry I took the week off blogging but life was getting hectic. There is always so much I want to blog but finding the time to sit down and write it out in a way that makes it worth reading is difficult. My sister and her boyfriend were just out for an extended weekend. It was so nice having them out. Collin is a wonderful guy, and it's really nice to see my sister so happy. It's also nice to have guests that don't want to eat out for every meal... We made some good food! The rest of the time was spent, shopping, hiking and visiting with a few 'projects' thrown in for good measure. There are many many photos to share and when I get a minute or two I'll post them all on flickr. The photo on the left is of my sister and Paige hiking at Englishman River Falls. Beautiful place, that is. I'm sure Hobbits live there but I haven't captured any photographic proof. Yet.

Nov 14, 2006

No Dad, it didn't snow. I'm referring to all of the christmas standards that I just finished downloading. Gawd, I love those old christmas standards. Here are a few of the tunes you need to find:Rudolf the red nosed Reindeer - Perry ComoTwas the night before Christmas- Perry Como (gotta be Mr. Como)The Christmas song - Nat King ColeMele kalikimaka- Bing CrosbyWhite Christmas- Bing, againRockin' around the Christmas tree- Peggy lee. That is just a sampling of my playlist... Pretty much anything by Perry Como or Bing Crosby is where it's at. This music sends me back to when I was a young kid and the excitement I felt around the holidays. I still feel the cold air on my face, and my snot freeze on my cheek when I hear this music... okay, maybe not the snot, but
you get the idea.

Nov 09, 2006

Over the last little while I've become excited about my creative future. As you all know I love painting, drawing, sewing, collage, digital scrapbooking, graphic design, blogging and most recently photography. I've tried so many other creative outlets in the past there are too many to list. If it involves using my right hemishpere (side of my brain) I am all over it. In my past life (as I like to refer to my short life as a carreer woman) I used my creative drive to design signage and printed material but the stress of deadlines and dealing with a boss nearly led me to an early grave (at least that is what I felt like at the time). Since then, I've been trying to find a way to make the things that I love to do (listed above)bring in a little extra money. In the past, I would do small watercolour paintings and sell them on ebay which was nice until ebay raised their fees so much that it didn't make it worth my time to list work. Now I'm giving Etsy a try... so far so good but I need to list more work there. I have many local venues worth approaching but I have a string of excuses (some valid and others not so much) why I haven't made the effort yet. One of my 'excuses' being my children. In order to create 'masterpieces' I need large chunks of uninterupted time so I can properly get my groove on. With two children under five- time for yourself is a very hard thing to find in any amount. I don't feel it's fair to be irritated and angry with them for being children while I'm trying to achieve my own personal agenda... after all they are only this small once. That being said, When I do plan for time- I try to make the very most of it.Recently though, the photography bug has bit me. I love seeing the world through the lens (or viewfinder as the case may be) and I want to learn more and do more with my new found passion. Ken and myself have been talking about me starting a business that blends my love of the digital arts and my passion for photography. The only thing I love more than taking wonderful photos is digitally enhancing those photos on my computer. Turning the ordinary into something extraordinary. This would be my niche. Ken and I sat down and figured out a pricing plan and I'm going to work on a flyer to hand out at my gym... something in time for the christmas season. If I can make any money at this I will put it toward better equipment and taking a photography course at the local college. The thought has me giddy. I've got gifts (mad skillz) and I feel like it's a sin to waste them because I may be 'afraid' of negative feedback.Here is a photo album I have put together of some of my favorite photos that I've taken over the last couple of years.Wish me luck...Well, I am being pushed of the computer because Mr. Island is doing some repairs...Take it easy folks,~jen

Nov 06, 2006

The photo you are looking at is a sandwich that is ham and cheese with a twist. Paige didn't want cheese or Mayo for that matter but she did want lettuce, cold macaroni and ketchup on the thing. I wanted her to promise that she was going to eat it and she did, with enthusiasm! Yes, she at it all. Wouldn't even share a piece with her brother... wow. She definitely got her taste buds from her Dad's side of the family.Despite what is suggested in the background of the photo... I did not have a liquid lunch. All of those bottles were empty, or I may have contemplated it.

Nov 04, 2006

I finally finished embroidering my patch for this patch swap. I love embroidery but it's been so long and the last time I designed my own, they were monograms... which were easy. I was quite rusty to start but got the hang of it in no time. This one is 'done' but I may do some changes to it before I send it away. Since I can't drop it in the mail until monday I'm going to start on another similar one- but it's going to be a dragon fly. This is one of those addictive crafts like knitting. You keep telling yourself, "Okay, I'll clean *fill in the blank* after I'm done this last row of stitches... okay this is the last row... okay only two more rows and I'm sooo done...". What is up with that??? I wish I could get that groove on when doing laundry. Can you imagine? "Okay I'll go to bed when I've folded this last pile of shirts... okay, maybe just a few more jeans... okay I'll just put all these away and I'll hit the sack...". Yah. Right. Not in this reality, or any other I'm afraid.Okay, I need to hit the sack- but wanted to share this with ya'll before I did.Enjoy, ~jen

Nov 02, 2006

A week ago i read about a photo contest on Tracey's blog 'Picture This', over at Club Moms. She was holding a photo contest called 'Sleeping like a Baby'. You all know that I have a problem that involves taking copious amounts of photos of my children... so this was the perfect contest for me. I went through my flickr archives and entered my favorite shot of sleeping Nolan from last fall. I found out this morning that I won!!! Well, I got second place- and the winning photo is a real stunning,heart-melter. I could care less that I even won a prize (which is so nice) but just having someone say "This photo is so great." and posting it on their blog, makes me soooo proud I could burst. Thank you Tracey, you've made my day!